Deli in Winfield town center appears to be closed for good

The doors to Winfield's first new town center business in years have been closed for nearly a month now.

But it doesn't appear that Heidi's Brooklyn Deli will be opening again.

The sign on the front door, which read "closed for renovations," was recently replaced by a sign advertising the space for lease.

"There's no intent by the current owners to reopen," Village Manager William Barlow said.

Calls placed to both Jayne Happel, the leasing agent, and Chris Kaucnik-Syphens, the owner of Heidi's Brooklyn Deli, weren't returned.

The franchise opened the Winfield sandwich shop in July 2006 to great fanfare. Village officials hoped the business would be the first of many to open in the town center.

Heidi's was one of three tenants which leased space on the first floor of a two-story, 25,000-square foot building village officials helped to usher in as part of a plan to help spur redevelopment in the downtown district.

But Winfield has struggled for the last two years to find a way to attract more retail projects or tenants into the 48-acre district.

A tax increment financing district has done little to spur more building projects in town. Meanwhile, village trustees have often fought bitterly among themselves about what building projects would be appropriate for the town center.

Barlow said there have been inquiries on leasing the former sandwich shop space by the physical rehabilitation center located next door, as well as some outside businesses.